By Cesar Perez |Staff writer|
When it comes to superhero speed, no one is faster than “The Flash.”
Warner Bros. Television and DC Entertainment have paired up to bring the story of Barry Allen to life in the new television series “The Flash,” airing on The CW this Fall.
The new series is a spin-off from the show “Arrow,” and stars Grant Gustin, Rick Cosnett, and Danielle Panabaker.
The first pilot episode premiered on Oct.7 on The CW, and has received generally positive reviews from critics.
The series is written and produced by Greg Berlanti and Andrew Kreisberg, who were also the co-creators of “Arrow.”
The pilot episode focuses on the origin story of Allen (Gustin), and his traumatic childhood experience of witnessing his mother being murdered by an mysterious force, and having his father wrongly accused of her death.
This experience followed Allen into his adulthood, because he always believed his father was innocent.
After a radioactive explosion occurs in the city and Allen is struck by lightning, he wakes up after nine months in a coma to discover he possesses an unusual power: superhuman speed.
Allen soon discovers that many other people were affected by this explosion and realizes these “meta-humans” pose a threat to the city.
Now it is up to Allen, now called “The Flash”, to stop these villains and discover who or what murdered his mother.
In what seems to be the golden age for superhero origin stories, the pilot episode for “The Flash” does not disappoint.
It is grounded in reality like “The Dark Knight” films, but also has a fun and entertaining quality, similar to Marvel superhero movies.
Gustin, the title actor, comes off as a very likable guy.
His role as Allen is similar to that of Peter Parker’s character in the Spider-Man franchise, and his nerdy and humorous personality is fitting to the role.
There is good chemistry between Gustin and his fellow co-stars, which creates a fun and entertaining atmosphere between the characters.
There is a small amount of action in the pilot episode, which can be a little graphic for young kids to watch.
The pacing is well done since it allows for character introduction, and creates some opportunity for development.
The musical score for the pilot episode has many cinematic elements to it, sounding emotional and raw during scenes between Allen and his father.
The main action sequences feature thrilling and epic fast-paced music.
While the episode had many strengths, there were some weak elements.
There is some cheesy dialogue and some of the acting in the dramatic scenes is a little unconvincing.
The special effects are a little unimpressive, which make it seem less believable.
However, it is pretty cool seeing the Flash in his full suit running around the city at super speed.
In the pilot episode, the strengths seem to greatly outweigh the weaknesses, and the overall quality of the episode did not suffer.
“The Flash” is entertaining and has you on the edge of your seat.
The series definitely has some great potential to continue on to more seasons.
Students can tune into his adventures Tuesdays at 8pm on the CW Network.
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